Electrical redundancy for bonded structures

ABSTRACT

An element that is configured to bond to another element is disclosed. A first element that can include a first plurality of contact pads on a first surface. The first plurality of contact pads includes a first contact pad and a second contact pad that are spaced apart from one another. The first and second contact pads are electrically connected to one another for redundancy. The first element can be prepared for direct bonding. The first element can be bonded to a second element to form a bonded structure. The second element has a second plurality of contact pads on a second surface. At least one of the second plurality of contact pads is bonded and electrically connected to at least one of the first plurality of contact pads.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent ApplicationNo. 62/953,046, filed Dec. 23, 2019, the entire contents of which arehereby incorporated by reference herein in their entirety and for allpurposes.

BACKGROUND Field of the Invention

The field relates to electrical redundancy for bonded structures and, inparticular, for structures that are directly bonded without an adhesive.

Description of the Related Art

Multiple semiconductor elements (such as integrated device dies) may bestacked on top of one another in various applications, such as highbandwidth memory (HBM) devices or other devices that utilize verticalintegration. The stacked elements can electrically communicate with oneanother through arrays of contact pads. It can be important to ensurethat the electrical connections between contact pads on two stackedelements are reliable.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Specific implementations will now be described with reference to thefollowing drawings, which are provided by way of example, and notlimitation.

FIG. 1A is a schematic side sectional view of a bonded structurecomprising a first element and a second element stacked on and bonded tothe first element along a bonding interface.

FIG. 1B is a schematic side sectional view of a bonded structurecomprising a first element and a second element stacked on and bonded tothe first element along a bonding interface, according to oneembodiment.

FIG. 1C is a schematic side sectional view of a bonded structurecomprising a first element and a second element stacked on and bonded tothe first element along a bonding interface, according to anotherembodiment.

FIG. 1D is a schematic side sectional view of a bonded structurecomprising a first element and a second element stacked on and bonded tothe first element along a bonding interface, according to anotherembodiment.

FIG. 2A is a schematic top plan view of a bonded structure showingexample locations of faults.

FIG. 2B is a schematic top plan view of another bonded structure showingexample locations of faults.

FIG. 2C a schematic top plan view of another bonded structure showingexample locations of faults.

FIG. 2D is a schematic top plan view of another bonded structure showingexample locations of faults.

FIG. 2E is a schematic top plan view of another bonded structure havingzones for redundant pads to provide back-up connections in the eventthat bonding generates faults that interfere with some connections in ahybrid bonded structure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Two or more semiconductor elements (such as integrated device dies) maybe stacked on or bonded to one another to form a bonded structure.Conductive contact pads of one element may be electrically connected tocorresponding conductive contact pads of another element. Any suitablenumber of elements can be stacked in the bonded structure. In someembodiments, the elements are directly bonded to one another without anadhesive. In other embodiments, the elements may be bonded with aconductive adhesive, such as solder, etc.

In various embodiments, a dielectric field region of a first element(e.g., a first semiconductor device die with active circuitry) can bedirectly bonded (e.g., using dielectric-to-dielectric bondingtechniques, such as the ZiBond® technique used by Xperi Corporation ofSan Jose, Calif.) to a corresponding dielectric field region of a secondelement (e.g., a second semiconductor device die with active circuitry)without an adhesive. For example, dielectric-to-dielectric bonds may beformed without an adhesive using the direct bonding techniques disclosedat least in U.S. Pat. Nos. 9,391,143 and 10,434,749, the entire contentsof each of which are incorporated by reference herein in their entiretyand for all purposes. Dielectrics that can be treated and activated fordirect bonding include, for example, inorganic dielectrics, particularlythose including silicon, such as silicon oxide (SiO), silicon nitride(SiN), silicon carbide (SiC), silicon oxynitride (SiON), siliconoxycarbide (SiOC), silicon carbonitride (SiCN), etc.

In various embodiments, the hybrid direct bonds can be formed without anintervening adhesive. For example, dielectric bonding surfaces can bepolished to a high degree of smoothness. The bonding surfaces can becleaned and exposed to a plasma and/or etchants to activate thesurfaces. In some embodiments, the surfaces can be terminated with aspecies after activation or during activation (e.g., during the plasmaand/or etch processes). Without being limited by theory, in someembodiments, the activation process can be performed to break chemicalbonds at the bonding surface, and the termination process can provideadditional chemical species at the bonding surface that improves thebonding energy during direct bonding. In some embodiments, theactivation and termination are provided in the same step, e.g., a plasmaor wet etchant to activate and terminate the surfaces. In otherembodiments, the bonding surface can be terminated in a separatetreatment to provide the additional species for direct bonding. Invarious embodiments, the terminating species can comprise nitrogen.Further, in some embodiments, the bonding surfaces can be exposed tofluorine. For example, there may be one or multiple fluorine peaks nearlayer and/or bonding interfaces. Thus, in the directly bondedstructures, the bonding interface between two dielectric materials cancomprise a very smooth interface with higher nitrogen content and/orfluorine peaks at the bonding interface. Additional examples ofactivation and/or termination treatments may be found throughout U.S.Pat. Nos. 9,564,414; 9,391,143; and 10,434,749, the entire contents ofeach of which are incorporated by reference herein in their entirety andfor all purposes.

In various embodiments, conductive contact pads of the first element canbe directly bonded to corresponding conductive contact pads of thesecond element. For example, a hybrid bonding technique can be used toprovide conductor-to-conductor direct bonds along a bond interface thatincludes covalently direct bonded dielectric-to-dielectric surfaces,prepared as described above. In various embodiments, theconductor-to-conductor (e.g., contact pad to contact pad) direct bondsand the dielectric-to-dielectric bonds can be formed using the directhybrid bonding techniques disclosed at least in U.S. Pat. Nos. 9,716,033and 9,852,988, the entire contents of each of which are incorporated byreference herein in their entirety and for all purposes.

For example, dielectric bonding surfaces can be prepared and directlybonded to one another without an intervening adhesive. Conductivecontact pads (which may be surrounded by nonconductive dielectric fieldregions) may also directly bond to one another without an interveningadhesive. In some embodiments, the respective contact pads can berecessed below the dielectric field regions, for example, recessed byless than 20 nm, less than 15 nm, or less than 10 nm, for example,recessed in a range of 2 nm to 20 nm, or in a range of 4 nm to 10 nm.With such slight recessing or corresponding protrusion, the contactspads are still considered to be at the relevant element surface withinthe meaning of the present application. The dielectric field regions canbe initially directly bonded to one another without an adhesive andwithout external pressure at room temperature in some embodiments and,subsequently, the bonded structure can be annealed. Upon annealing, thecontact pads can expand and contact one another to form a metal-to-metaldirect bond. Beneficially, the use of the hybrid bonding techniquesknown by the trade name Direct Bond Interconnect, or DBI®, can enablefine pixel pitches as explained above and/or high density of padsconnected across the direct bond interface (e.g., small or fine pitchesfor regular arrays). In some embodiments, the pitch of the bonding padsmay be less than 40 microns or less than 10 microns or even less than 2microns. For some applications the ratio of the pitch of the bondingpads (a size of a pad plus a spacing between the pad to an adjacent pad)to one of the dimensions of the bonding pad (the size of the pad) isless than 5, or less than 3 and sometimes desirably less than 2. Invarious embodiments, the contact pads can comprise copper, althoughother metals may be suitable. In some embodiments, bonding pads can havetwo or more different pitches. For example, a pitch of the bonding padsmay be about 40 microns in one area of the first and/or second element,and another pitch of the bonding pads may be 10 microns in another areaof the first and/or second element.

In various embodiments, the contact pads can be formed in respectivefirst and second arrays of pads on the first and second elements. If anydebris or surface contaminant is present at the surface of the first orsecond elements, voids may be created at the bond interface, or debrismay intervene between opposing contact pads. In addition, reactantbyproducts generated during bonding and annealing, e.g. hydrogen andwater vapor, may also form voids at the bond interface. These voids mayeffectively inhibit the joining of particular contact pads in thevicinity, creating openings or other failures in the bond. For example,any void larger than the pad diameter (or pitch) can potentially createan opening and hybrid bond failure.

Beneficially, various embodiments disclosed herein can provideelectrical redundancy such that redundant contact pads (e.g., a pair ofelectrically redundant pads) are laterally separated by a spacing largeenough to overcome typical void dimensions. In such embodiments,electrical connection can be made between two directly bonded elementseven if one pair of corresponding contact pads are not directlyconnected due to a void at the bond interface, because a redundant pairfor the same desired electrical connection are directly connected. Thedisclosed embodiments can accordingly improve device yield. In somecases, speed may be affected if, for example, the void occurs for a padwith a short connection. In various embodiments, redundancy may not beimplemented for all the contact pads of an element, and instead may beimplemented for only a subset of the connections desired across the bondinterface. In other embodiments, however, each desired connection acrossthe bond interface may be provided with one or more redundant contactpads on both sides of the bond interface (redundant bond pad pairs). Insome embodiments, the electrical redundancy may be provided for onlysignal pads, and may not be provided for power and ground pads. In otherembodiments, electrical redundancy may also be provided for power and/orground pads.

As explained herein, two or more pads for the same element (the sameside of a bond interface) can be provided with pad redundancy byelectrically shorting the two or more pads together. In variousembodiments, the pads can be shorted together by a wire or trace thatdoes not include any active circuitry or switches. The two or more padscan be spaced or offset for redundancy by a spacing in a range of 1micron to 10 microns for pads near one another, or by a spacing in arange of 50 microns to 100 microns for pads in different regions of thebonded structure. In some arrangements, pads offset by large dimensions,when implemented due to voids, may affect speed due to increases inimpedance with lengthened current paths; however, such redundancyimproves the probability of making an adequate electrical contact evenif the openings or voids may not be completely eliminated. In largedevices, the electrical redundancy may result in lateral trace routingdesigns more complicated than in other structures.

In some embodiments, the element can comprise active circuitry, aswitch, and/or an electronic fuse that is coupled to the trace. Theactive circuitry, switch or electronic fuse can selectively connect apreferred electrical path. Some logic may also be implemented in thefirst or second element such that when one or more contact pads in thefirst preferred electrical path is detected to have a faulty connection,the switch or electronic fuse may be activated to disconnect thepreferred path and make the electrical connection for another electricalpath utilizing redundant pads.

FIG. 1A is a schematic side sectional view of a bonded structure 1comprising a first element 10 (e.g., a first semiconductor device die)and a second element 12 (e.g., a second semiconductor device die)stacked on and bonded to the first element 10 along a bonding interface14. In the illustrated embodiment, the first and second elements 10, 12are directly bonded without an adhesive. For example, correspondingdielectric field regions (e.g., a first dielectric field region 16 and asecond dielectric field region 18) and corresponding contact pads (e.g.,first contact pads 20 and second contact pads 22) may be directly bondedwithout an intervening adhesive in a direct hybrid bond arrangement. Asexplained above, if one or both of the first and second elements 10, 12is contaminated or includes debris on the bonding surface(s), then oneor more faults 24 may be present so as to impair direct hybrid bondingbetween the first and second elements at those locations. The fault(s)can include a void or an opening, and/or a debris. If the fault(s) 24are at or near contact pads, then the electrical connection between twoopposing or corresponding contact pads 20, 22 may be ineffective.

FIG. 1B is a schematic side sectional view of a bonded structure 2comprising a first element 10 (e.g., a first semiconductor device die)and a second element 12 (e.g., a second semiconductor device die)stacked on and bonded to the first element 10 along a bonding interface14. FIG. 1C is a schematic side sectional view of a bonded structure 3comprising a first element 10 (e.g., a first semiconductor device die)and a second element 12 (e.g., a second semiconductor device die)stacked on and bonded to the first element 10 along a bonding interface14. As in FIG. 1A, in FIGS. 1B and 1C, corresponding dielectric fieldregions (e.g., a first dielectric field region 16 and a seconddielectric field region 18) and corresponding contact pads (e.g., firstcontact pads 20 and second contact pads 22) may be directly bondedwithout an intervening adhesive in direct hybrid bonding arrangements.

In FIGS. 1B and 1C, in the event that one or more contact pads (e.g.,the first contact pads 20) may not electrically and/or directly contactone or more corresponding pads (e.g., the second contact pads 22) onopposite dies or semiconductor elements (“an unconnected pad 20 a, 22a,” see the first pad in FIGS. 1B and 1C) due to, for example, thefault(s) 24, one or more conductive lines, shown in the form of traces26, 28, can connect the unconnected pad 20 a, 22 a to another contactpad 20 b, 22 b to provide electrical redundancy. Although connectionsfrom the pads to internal circuitry are not shown, the skilled artisanwill readily appreciate such connections exist, and that the traces 26,28 effectively connect that internal circuitry to both pads 20 a, 20 bor 22 a, 22 b. In some embodiments, internal circuitry 30 (see FIG. 1D)including a switch or an electronic fuse may also be used to alloweither or both of pad pairs 20 a, 22 a and 20 b, 22 b to be in theelectrical path connecting those contact pads to internal electricalcircuitry in the bonded structure 2. The internal circuitry 30 (see FIG.1D) can be connected via conductive lines such as the traces 26 and/or28 of first element or second element. The internal circuitry may alsoinclude some logic component to select one pad pair (e.g., the pads 20a, 22 a) over other (e.g., the pads 20 b, 22 b). The trace(s) 26, 28 canbe provided in both the first and second elements 10, 12, as shown inFIGS. 1B and 1C. In other embodiments, the trace(s) 26, 28 can beprovided in only one of the first and second elements 10, 12. Thetrace(s) 26, 28 can serve to electrically short a first unconnectedcontact pad 20 a, 20 c, 22 a, 22 c to a second functional and connectedcontact pad 20 b, 20 d, 22 b, 22 d to provide electrical redundancy.Thus, even though the first pad 20 a may not be electrically connectedto a corresponding pad 22 a on the second element 12 (or vice versa),the second pad 20 b can provide the connection so that the bondedstructure 2, 3 maintains all electrical connections. In someembodiments, the trace(s) 26. 28 connecting redundant pads lack switchesor other circuitry that may otherwise add to complexity and impedance,and may be implemented entirely within the back-end-of-line (BEOL).FIGS. 1B and 1C show redundant for unconnected or poorly connected padpairs 20 a/22 a, 20 c/22 c for purposes of illustration of the advantageof such redundancy. Of course, the skilled artisan will understand thatthe actual voids resulting in the unconnected or poorly connected padsdo not exist at the time of die design, and may not occur at all afterbonding, and the redundancy is best viewed as a prophylactic measure.Provision of the redundant connections greatly improves chances ofsuccessfully completing the desired electrical connections, regardlessof whether such voids actually form in the course of direct hybridbonding.

In FIG. 1B, the trace(s) 26, 28 can connect and electrically short twopads 20 a, 20 b/22 a, 22 b within each element that are near oneanother. In the illustrated embodiment, the trace(s) can connect twoadjacent pads. In FIG. 1C, the trace(s) 26, 28 can connect and short twopads 20 a, 20 b/20 c, 20 d/22 a, 22 b/22 c, 22 d that are relatively farapart from one another, e.g., in different regions of the bondedstructure. Providing an increased spacing between the first and secondcontact pads can beneficially improve the probability of adequateelectrical redundancy, since the increased spacing between shorted padsmay be able to effectively position the second connected contact padsufficiently far away from the fault(s) and the first unconnectedcontact pad. Therefore, a bonded structure with a trace(s) that connectspads that are relatively far apart can be particularly beneficial whenthe bonded structure has a relatively large fault(s).

In some embodiments, in which pads 20, 22 form part of a regular arrayor distribution of contact pads, the first and second pads 20 a, 20 b/22a, 22 b can be spaced apart by a spacing that is at least a pitch p ofthe contact pads 20, 22, at least twice the pitch p of the contact pads20, 22, at least three times the pitch p, or at least five times thepitch p. For purposes of this comparison, the pitch p can be associatedwith a minimum pitch of pads 20, 22 along the first or second elements10, 12, in cases where the shorted pads 20, 22 may be parts of padgroups with different pitches. In some embodiments, the first and secondpads 20 a, 20 b/22 a, 22 b can be spaced apart by a spacing that is in arange of two to 1000 times the minimum pitch p of the pads 20, 22, in arange of two to 500 times the pitch p, or in a range of two to fiftytimes the pitch p. In some embodiments, the first and second pads 20 a,20 b/22 a, 22 b can be spaced apart such that at least one contact padis disposed between the first and second pads 20 a, 20 b/22 a, 22 b. Forexample, the first and second pads 20 a, 20 b/22 a, 22 b can be spacedapart such that at least two contact pads, at least three contact pads,or at least four contact pads are disposed between the first and secondpads. However, the skilled artisan will appreciate that even adjacentpads can be adequately spaced for achieving the desired redundancy, asshown in FIG. 1B, and that not all dies have regular bond pad patterns(i.e., not all semiconductor elements have identifiable pitches). Invarious embodiments, the first and second contact pads 20 a, 20 b/22 a,22 b can be spaced apart by a spacing in a range of 2 microns to 100microns, in a range of 10 microns to 100 microns, in a range of 10microns to 5 mm, in a range of 10 microns to 1000 microns, in a range of50 microns to 5 mm, in a range of 50 microns to 1000 microns, in a rangeof 50 micron to 500 microns, in a range of 100 microns to 1000 microns,in a range of 100 microns to 500 microns, or in a range of 50 microns to1500 microns.

FIG. 1D is a schematic side sectional view of a bonded structure 2′comprising a first element 10 (e.g., a first semiconductor device die)and a second element 12 (e.g., a second semiconductor device die)stacked on and bonded to the first element 10 along a bonding interface14. The bonded structure 2′ illustrated in FIG. 1D is generally similarto the bonded structure 2 illustrated in FIG. 1B. The bonded structure2′ can include internal circuitry 30 that is electrically coupled to thetrace(s) 26, 28. The internal circuitry 30 can include a switch or anelectronic fuse. In some embodiments, the internal circuitry 30 may beused to allow either or both of pad pairs 20 a, 22 a and 20 b, 22 b tobe in the electrical path to be enabled. The internal circuitry 30 mayalso include some logic component to select one pad pair (e.g., the pads20 a, 22 a) over other (e.g., the pads 20 b, 22 b). While illustrated ascontrolling conductivity along the traces 26, 28 of both elements 10,12, the skilled artisan will appreciate that the circuitry 30 can beprovided on only one of the elements 10, 12. The internal circuitry 30may be included in bonded structures that are the same as or generalsimilar to the bonded structure 3 illustrated in FIG. 1C.

FIGS. 2A-2E are schematic top plan views of example bonded structures4-8. The bonded structures 4-8 can include devices. The devices in FIGS.2A-2E represent stacked devices such as high bandwidth memory (HBM)devices and other three-dimensional stacked devices. As shown in the topviews of FIGS. 2A-2E, the bonded structures 4-8 can each comprise a highdensity via region or a conductive via region 32 in which conductivevias transfer signals vertically to dies within the stack ofsemiconductor elements, and peripheral regions 34 where there is room toprovide redundant contact pads. It can be important to provideelectrical redundancy for pads that are located within the conductivevia regions 32. Beneficially, the space provided by the peripheralregions 34 or zones may include empty space that can be used forredundant contact pads.

As shown in FIG. 2A, the size of a fault 24 located in the via region 32may be sufficiently small such that only a few pads may utilize theelectrical redundancies disclosed herein. By contrast, in FIG. 2B, thesize of the fault 24 may be sufficiently large such that a large numberof pads (e.g., a majority or the entirety of pads in a particular zoneor region) may utilize the electrical redundancies.

FIGS. 2C and 2D illustrate other examples of potential fault 24locations and sizes that may interfere with electrical connectionsbetween directly bonded elements, such as dies. As in FIG. 2A, the sizeof a fault 24 located in the via region 32 shown in FIG. 2C may besufficiently small such that only a few pads may utilize the electricalredundancies disclosed herein. By contrast, as in FIG. 2B, the size ofthe faults 24 may be sufficiently large in FIG. 2D such that a largenumber of pads (e.g., a majority or the entirety of pads in a particularzone or region) may utilize the electrical redundancies.

For example as shown in the top view of FIG. 2E, the bonded structure 8can include a plurality of zones 36 along the conductive via regions 32in which it may be important to provide electrical redundancy. In someembodiments, one zone of the plurality of zones 36 can include 50-1000pads, e.g., about 200 to about 500 conductive pads. For example, for afirst zone 36 a of primary contacts, one or more redundant zones 36 a′,36 a″ in the peripheral regions 34 can include contact pads electricallyshorted to corresponding pads in the first zone 36 a. Similarly, in asecond zone 36 b of primary contacts, one or more redundant zones 36 b′,36 b″ in the peripheral regions 34 can include contact pads electricallyshorted to corresponding pads in the second zone 36 b. In a third zone36 c of primary pads, one or more redundant zones 36 c′, 36 c″ in theperipheral regions 34 can include contact pads electrically shorted tocorresponding pads in the third zone 36 c. In a fourth zone 36 d ofprimary pads, one or more redundant zones 36 d′, 36 d″ in the peripheralregions 34 can include contact pads electrically shorted tocorresponding pads in the fourth zone 36 d.

In some embodiments, each of the redundant zones 36 a′, 36 a″, 36 b′, 36b″, 36 c′, 36 c″, 36 d′, 36 d″ in the peripheral regions 34 can bespaced apart from the conductive via regions 32 by a distance d. In someembodiments, the distance d can be at least 10 microns. For example, thedistance d can be in a range of 10 microns to 1000 microns, in a rangeof 50 microns to 1500 microns, or in a range of 100 microns to 1000microns. In some embodiments, the distance d can be at least a pitch ofthe contact pads, or at least twice the pitch of the contact pads. Forexample, the distance d can be two to 1000 times the pitch, or two to500 times the pitch. This distance d can be selected based uponexperimentation to maximize the changes that no one given fault caninterfere with both the primary and the redundant pad pairs.

In various embodiments, redundant pads may be provided only for signalpads, such that the connecting lines comprise signal lines, and may notbe provided for power and/or ground pads. In other embodiments,redundant pads may also be provided for power and/or ground pads. Anysuitable number of zones may be provided. Each zone can have a pluralityof pads. In some embodiments, redundancy can be provided on a per padbasis, such that each pad may include one or more correspondingredundant pads to which it is electrically shorted. Minor logic circuitscan decide which zone is to be used. For example, logic circuits can beused to decide which redundant zone is to be used for unconnected pads.

In various embodiments, the first and second contact pads can be shortedwithin an element (e.g., in the first and/or second elements or dies),and can be separated by greater than 5 times a pitch of the pads. Insome embodiments, first and second pads can be shorted in each of thefirst and second elements (e.g., upper and lower dies). In someembodiments, at least four contact pads can be disposed laterallybetween the first and second contact pads. In some embodiments, there isa void or delamination (e.g., debonding or lack of bonding) under one ofthe first and second contact pads. In some embodiments, two or moreredundant contact pads can be shorted to at least one through substratevia (TSV). In some embodiments, two or more redundant contact pads canbe shorted to two or more TSVs, which can provide the ability to shiftsignal traffic using redundancies based on openings, hot spots, etc.

Thus, in one embodiment, a bonded structure is disclosed. The bondedstructure can include a first element having a first plurality ofcontact pads at a first surface, the first plurality of contact padsincluding a first contact pad and a second contact pad spaced apart fromone another by at least 10 microns, the first and second contact padselectrically shorted to one another. The bonded structure can include asecond element stacked on the first element, the second element having asecond plurality of contact pads at a second surface, at least one ofthe second plurality of contact pads bonded and electrically connectedto at least one of the first plurality of contact pads.

In some embodiments, the first and second contact pads can be spacedapart from one another by at least five times a first pitch of the firstplurality of contact pads. The first and second contact pads can bespaced apart from one another by a spacing that is in a range of two to1000 times the first pitch. The first and second contact pads can bespaced apart from one another by a spacing that is in a range of two to500 times the pitch. The first and second contact pads can be spacedapart by at least 2 microns. The first and second contact pads can bespaced apart by a spacing in a range of 10 microns to 1000 microns. Thefirst and second contact pads can be spaced apart by a spacing in arange of 50 microns to 1500 microns. The first and second contact padscan be spaced apart by a spacing in a range of 100 microns to 1000microns. The at least one of the first plurality of contact pads can bedirectly bonded to the at least one of the second plurality of contactpads without an intervening adhesive. The bonded structure can includefirst and second dielectric field regions on the first and secondelements, the first and second dielectric field regions directly bondedto one another without an adhesive. The first contact pad of the firstelement can be disposed opposite a third contact pad of the secondelement. The second contact pad of the first element can be disposedopposite a fourth contact pad of the second element. A void can bedisposed between at least a portion of the first and third contact pads.The second and fourth contact pads can physically and electricallycontact one another. The first and third contact pads may not bedirectly electrically connected to one another. The first contact pad ofthe first element can be disposed opposite a third contact pad of thesecond element. The second contact pad of the first element can bedisposed opposite a fourth contact pad of the second element. At least aportion of the first and third contact pads can be located at a bondingfault along a bonding interface between the first and second elements.The second and fourth contact pads can physically and electricallycontact one another.

In another embodiment, a bonded structure is disclosed. The bondedstructure can include a first element having a first plurality of spacedcontact pads having a first pitch at a first surface, the firstplurality of contact pads including a first contact pad and a secondcontact pad of the first plurality spaced apart from one another, thefirst and second contact pads electrically shorted to one another. Thebonded structure can include a second element stacked on the firstelement, the second element having a second plurality of spaced contactpads at a second surface, at least one of the second plurality ofcontact pads bonded and electrically connected to at least one of thefirst plurality of contact pads.

In some embodiments, the first and second contact pads can be spacedapart from one another by at least five times the first pitch. The firstand second contact pads can be spaced apart from one another by aspacing that is in a range of two to 1000 times the first pitch. Thefirst and second contact pads can be spaced apart from one another by aspacing that is in a range of two to 500 times the pitch. The first andsecond contact pads can be spaced apart from one another by at least 10microns. The first and second contact pads can be spaced apart by aspacing in a range of 10 microns to 1000 microns. The first and secondcontact pads can be spaced apart by a spacing in a range of 50 micronsto 1500 microns. The first and second contact pads can be spaced apartby a spacing in a range of 100 microns to 1000 microns. The at least oneof the first plurality of contact pads can be directly bonded to the atleast one of the second plurality of contact pads without an interveningadhesive. The bonded structure can include first and second dielectricfield regions on the first and second elements, the first and seconddielectric field regions directly bonded to one another without anadhesive. The first contact pad of the first element can be disposedopposite a third contact pad of the second element. The second contactpad of the first element can be disposed opposite a fourth contact padof the second element. A void can be disposed between at least a portionof the first and third contact pads. The second and fourth contact padscan physically and electrically contact one another. The first and thirdcontact pads may not be directly electrically connected to one another.The first contact pad of the first element can be disposed opposite athird contact pad of the second element. The second contact pad of thefirst element can be disposed opposite a fourth contact pad of thesecond element. At least a portion of the first and third contact padscan be located at a bonding fault along a bonding interface between thefirst and second elements. The second and fourth contact pads canphysically and electrically contact one another.

In one embodiment, the first contact pad and the second contact pad arespaced apart from one another by at least twice the first pitch.

In one aspect, a first element that is configured to directly bond to asecond element without an intervening adhesive is disclosed. The firstelement can include a first plurality of contact pads that arepositioned at a first surface of the first element. The first pluralityof contact pads include a first contact pad and a second contact padthat are spaced apart from one another by at least 10 microns. The firstplurality of contact pads are prepared for direct bonding. The firstelement can also include a conductive line that electrically connectsthe first and second contact pads. The first and second contact pads areelectrically connected to one another through the conductive line. Thefirst element can further include a first dielectric field regionpositioned at the first surface of the first element. The firstdielectric field region are disposed at least partially between thefirst and second contact pads. The first dielectric field region isprepared for direct bonding.

In one embodiment, the first and second contact pads are spaced apartfrom one another by at least five times a first pitch of the firstplurality of contact pads. The first and second contact pads are spacedapart from one another by a spacing that is in a range of two to 1000times the first pitch.

In one embodiment, the first and second contact pads are spaced apart bya spacing in a range of 10 microns to 1000 microns.

In one embodiment, each of the first plurality of contact pads isprepared to directly bond to each of a second plurality of contact padsof the second element without an intervening adhesive. The firstdielectric field region on the first element is prepared to directlybond to a second dielectric field region of the second element withoutan adhesive.

In one embodiment, the first element further include a circuitry that iscoupled to the first contact pad and the second contact pad along theconductive line. The circuitry can be configured to selectively enableshorting the first contact pad to the second contact pad. The circuitrycomprises a switch or an electronic fuse.

In one aspect, a bonded structure is disclosed. The bonded structure caninclude a first element that has a first plurality of contact pads at afirst surface. The first plurality of contact pads includes a firstcontact pad and a second contact pad that are spaced apart from oneanother. The first and second contact pads are electrically connected toone another. The bonded structure can also include a second element thatis stacked on the first element. The second element has a secondplurality of contact pads at a second surface corresponding to the firstplurality of contact pads of the first element. At least one of thesecond plurality of contact pads is bonded and electrically connected toat least one of the first plurality of contact pads.

In one embodiment, the first contact pad and the second contact pad arespaced apart from one another according to a first pitch across thefirst plurality of contact pads.

In one embodiment, the first contact pad and the second contact pad arespaced apart from one another by at least twice the first pitch.

In one embodiment, the first and second contact pads are spaced apartfrom one another by at least five times the first pitch.

In one embodiment, the first and second contact pads are spaced apartfrom one another by a spacing that is in a range of two to 1000 timesthe first pitch.

In one embodiment, the first and second contact pads are spaced apartfrom one another by a spacing that is in a range of two to 500 times thepitch.

In one embodiment, the first and second contact pads are spaced apartfrom one another by at least 2 microns.

In one embodiment, the first and second contact pads are spaced apartfrom one another by at least 10 microns.

The first and second contact pads can be spaced apart by a spacing in arange of 10 microns to 1000 microns.

In one embodiment, the at least one of the first plurality of contactpads is directly bonded to the at least one of the second plurality ofcontact pads without an intervening adhesive. The bonded structure canfurther include first and second dielectric field regions on the firstand second elements. The first and second dielectric field regions canbe directly bonded to one another without an adhesive.

In one embodiment, the first contact pad of the first element isdisposed opposite a third contact pad of the second element. The secondcontact pad of the first element can be disposed opposite a fourthcontact pad of the second element. A void can be disposed between atleast a portion of the first and third contact pads. The second andfourth contact pads can be physically and electrically contact oneanother. The first and third contact pads may not directly connected toone another.

In one embodiment, the first contact pad of the first element isdisposed opposite a third contact pad of the second element. The secondcontact pad of the first element can be disposed opposite a fourthcontact pad of the second element. At least a portion of the first andthird contact pads can be located at a bonding fault along a bondinginterface between the first and second elements. The second and fourthcontact pads physically and electrically contact one another.

In one embodiment, the first contact pad and the second contact pad areelectrically connected to one another by way of circuitry configured toselectively short the first contact pad to the second contact pad.

All of these embodiments are intended to be within the scope of thisdisclosure. These and other embodiments will become readily apparent tothose skilled in the art from the following detailed description of theembodiments having reference to the attached figures, the claims notbeing limited to any particular embodiment(s) disclosed. Although thiscertain embodiments and examples have been disclosed herein, it will beunderstood by those skilled in the art that the disclosedimplementations extend beyond the specifically disclosed embodiments toother alternative embodiments and/or uses and obvious modifications andequivalents thereof. In addition, while several variations have beenshown and described in detail, other modifications will be readilyapparent to those of skill in the art based upon this disclosure. It isalso contemplated that various combinations or sub-combinations of thespecific features and aspects of the embodiments may be made and stillfall within the scope. It should be understood that various features andaspects of the disclosed embodiments can be combined with, orsubstituted for, one another in order to form varying modes of thedisclosed implementations. Thus, it is intended that the scope of thesubject matter herein disclosed should not be limited by the particulardisclosed embodiments described above, but should be determined only bya fair reading of the claims that follow.

What is claimed is:
 1. A first element configured to directly bond to asecond element without an intervening adhesive, the first elementcomprising: a first plurality of contact pads at a first surface of thefirst element, the first plurality of contact pads including a firstcontact pad and a second contact pad spaced apart from one another by atleast 10 microns, the first plurality of contact pads prepared fordirect bonding; a conductive line electrically connecting the first andsecond contact pads; and a first dielectric field region at the firstsurface of the first element, the first dielectric field region disposedat least partially between the first and second contact pads, the firstdielectric field region prepared for direct bonding, wherein the firstplurality of contact pads further includes a third contact padpositioned between the first contact pad and the second contact pad, thethird contact pad is electrically non-redundant of the first and secondcontact pads.
 2. The first element of claim 1, wherein the first andsecond contact pads are spaced apart from one another by a spacing thatis in a range of two to 1000 times a pitch of two adjacent contact padsof the first plurality of contact pads.
 3. The first element of claim 1,wherein the conductive line is a signal line.
 4. The first element ofclaim 1, wherein the first and second contact pads are spaced apart by aspacing in a range of 10 microns to 1000 microns.
 5. The first elementof claim 1, wherein each of the first plurality of contact pads isprepared to directly bond to each of a second plurality of contact padsof the second element without an intervening adhesive, and the firstdielectric field region on the first element is prepared to directlybond to a second dielectric field region of the second element withoutan adhesive.
 6. The first element of claim 1, further comprising acircuitry coupled to the first contact pad and the second contact padalong the conductive line, the circuitry configured to selectivelyenable electrical shorting the first contact pad to the second contactpad.
 7. A bonded structure comprising: a first element having a firstplurality of contact pads at a first surface, the first plurality ofcontact pads including a first contact pad and a second contact padspaced apart from one another by at least 10 microns, the first andsecond contact pads electrically shorted to one another; and a secondelement stacked on the first element, the second element having a secondplurality of contact pads at a second surface, at least one of thesecond plurality of contact pads bonded and electrically connected to atleast one of the first plurality of contact pads, wherein the firstplurality of contact pads further includes a third contact padpositioned between the first contact pad and the second contact pad, andwherein no electrical redundancy is provided for the third contact pad.8. The bonded structure of claim 7, wherein the first and second contactpads are spaced apart from one another by at least five times a firstpitch of the first plurality of contact pads.
 9. The bonded structure ofclaim 7, wherein the first and second contact pads are spaced apart by aspacing in a range of 50 microns to 1500 microns.
 10. The bondedstructure of claim 7, further comprising first and second dielectricfield regions on the first and second elements, the first and seconddielectric field regions directly bonded to one another without anadhesive, wherein the at least one of the first plurality of contactpads is directly bonded to the at least one of the second plurality ofcontact pads without an intervening adhesive.
 11. The bonded structureof claim 7, wherein the first contact pad of the first element isdisposed opposite a fourth contact pad of the second element, whereinthe second contact pad of the first element is disposed opposite a fifthcontact pad of the second element, wherein a void is disposed between atleast a portion of the first and fourth contact pads, and wherein thesecond and fifth contact pads physically and electrically contact oneanother.
 12. The bonded structure of claim 7, wherein the first contactpad of the first element is disposed opposite a fourth contact pad ofthe second element, wherein the second contact pad of the first elementis disposed opposite a fifth contact pad of the second element, whereinat least a portion of the first and fourth contact pads are located at abonding fault along a bonding interface between the first and secondelements, and wherein the second and fifth contact pads physically andelectrically contact one another.
 13. A bonded structure comprising: afirst element having a first plurality of contact pads at a firstsurface, the first plurality of contact pads including a first contactpad and a second contact pad spaced apart from one another, and anintervening contact pad disposed between the first and second contactpads, wherein the first and second contact pads are electricallyconnected to one another and the intervening contact pad is electricallynon-redundant of the first and second contact pads; and a second elementstacked on the first element, the second element having a secondplurality of contact pads on a second surface, at least one of thesecond plurality of contact pads bonded and electrically connected to atleast one of the first plurality of contact pads.
 14. The bondedstructure of claim 13, wherein the first and second contact pads arespaced apart from one another by at least five times a pitch of thefirst plurality of contact pads.
 15. The bonded structure of claim 13,wherein the first and second contact pads are spaced apart from oneanother by a spacing that is in a range of two to 1000 times a pitch ofthe first plurality of contact pads.
 16. The bonded structure of claim13, wherein the first and second contact pads are spaced apart from oneanother by a spacing that is in a range of two to 500 times a pitch ofthe first plurality of contact pads.
 17. The bonded structure of claim13, wherein the at least one of the first plurality of contact pads isdirectly bonded to the at least one of the second plurality of contactpads without an intervening adhesive.
 18. The bonded structure of claim17, further comprising first and second dielectric field regions on thefirst and second elements, the first and second dielectric field regionsdirectly bonded to one another without an adhesive.
 19. The bondedstructure of claim 13, wherein the first contact pad of the firstelement is disposed opposite a third contact pad of the second element,wherein the second contact pad of the first element is disposed oppositea fourth contact pad of the second element, wherein a void is disposedbetween at least a portion of the first and third contact pads, andwherein the second and fourth contact pads physically and electricallycontact one another.
 20. The bonded structure of claim 13, wherein thefirst contact pad and the second contact pad are spaced apart from oneanother by at least twice a pitch of the first plurality of contactpads.
 21. The bonded structure of claim 7, wherein the first elementcomprises a first zone having a third plurality of contact padsincluding the first contact pad and a second zone having a fourthplurality of contact pads including the second contact pad, the thirdplurality of contact pads are electrically shorted to corresponding padsof the fourth plurality of contact pads in the second zone.
 22. Thebonded structure of claim 13, wherein the first and second contact padselectrically connected to one another through a conductive trace. 23.The bonded structure of claim 13, wherein the first and second contactpads are signal pads.
 24. The bonded structure of claim 13, wherein thefirst and second contact pads are spaced apart from one another by atleast 10 microns.
 25. The bonded structure of claim 13, wherein thefirst and second contact pads are spaced apart from one another by aspacing in a range of 1 micron to 10 microns.
 26. The bonded structureof claim 13, wherein the first and second contact pads are spaced apartfrom one another by a spacing in a range of 2 microns to 100 microns.27. The bonded structure of claim 26, wherein the first and secondcontact pads are spaced apart from one another by a spacing in a rangeof 50 microns to 100 microns.
 28. The bonded structure of claim 22,wherein the conductive trace is formed in a back-end-of line (BEOL)layer.
 29. The bonded structure of claim 22, wherein the conductivetrace lacks switches and other circuitry between the first and secondcontact pads.
 30. The bonded structure of claim 13, further comprising aplurality of pads disposed between the first and second contact pads,the plurality of pads comprising the intervening contact pad.
 31. Thefirst element of claim 1, wherein no electrical redundancy is providedfor the third contact pad.
 32. The first element of claim 31, whereinthe first and second contact pads are signal pads.
 33. The first elementof claim 32, wherein the third contact pad is a power or ground pad.